COMPOSITIONS BASED ON EMULSIONS OF WAX AND PARTICULATE INORGANIC COMPOUNDS FOR IMPROVED WATER-REPELLENCY, AND THE USE THEREOF

Abstract

Compositions based on wax emulsions and particulate inorganic compounds for improved water repellency are described, based on wax emulsions and particulate inorganic compounds for improved water repellency comprising, as a percentage of the total composition, 5% to 90% water, 0.01% to 20% surfactants, 2% to 90% waxes and 2% to 90% particulate inorganic compounds with a particle size of between/among 0.01 m and 1000 m, selected from among unmodified phyllosilicates such as agalmatolite, potassium aluminosilicate, talc, manganese silicate, or mixtures thereof in any proportion, added before or after the emulsification of the said waxes, and presenting a synergistic effect of increased water repellency when the said compositions are applied, preferably on reconstituted wood, composite panels.

Claims

1) A composition based on wax emulsions and particulate inorganic compounds for improved water repellency comprising by percentage of weight of the total composition: a. water at 5% to 90%; b. surfactants at 0.01% to 20%; c. waxes at 2% to 90%; and d. particulate inorganic compounds at 2% to 90%, with a particle size between 0.01 m to 1000 m.

2) The composition according to claim 1, comprised by percentage of weight of the total composition of 30% to 50% water, 0.5% to 3% surfactants, 35% to 60% waxes, and 5% to 35% particulate inorganic compounds with a particle size of 20 m to 60 m.

3) The composition according to claim 1, comprising: a. 48% water; b. 35% wax; c. 2% surfactants; and d. 15% particulate inorganic compounds.

4) The composition according to claim 1, wherein the waxes are selected from the group consisting of: minerals, selected from the group consisting of: vaseline, paraffin, microcrystalline petroleum wax, slack wax, ozocerite, lignite wax, and peat wax; plant, selected from the group consisting of: soybean, palm, flaxseed, candelilla, carnauba, ricin, olive waxes, and esters; animal, selected from the group consisting of: beeswax, lanolin, beef lard derivatives; and synthetic, selected between polyethylene wax and Fischer-Tropsch wax; and combinations thereof.

5) The composition according to claim 4, wherein the wax is paraffin.

6) The composition according to claim 1, wherein the particulate inorganic compounds is selected from the group consisting of: calcium and magnesium carbonate, dolomite, limestone, barite, kaolin, mica, unmodified phyllosilicates including pyrophyllite, agalmatolites, manganese silicate and aluminum, gypsum, plaster, calcium sulfate, titanium dioxide, silicon dioxide, iron oxides, chrome oxides, antimony oxides, aluminum oxides and hydroxides, bentonite, montmorillonite, hectorite, saponite; and illite, and combinations thereof.

7) The composition according to claim 6, wherein the particulate inorganic compound is unmodified agalmatolite.

8) A method for treating sheets of reconstituted wood obtained from wood composite materials, by applying the compositions according to claim 1.

9) The method according to claim 8, wherein the reconstituted wood is selected from the group consisting of; MDP (Medium Density Particleboard), MDF (Medium Density Fiberboard), OSB (Oriented Strand Board) and HDF (High Density Fiberboard).

10) (canceled)

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0032] Wax emulsions receive additives consisting of particulate inorganic compounds with a particle size of 0.01 m to 1000 m, preferably 20 m to 60 m, from minerals that endow these emulsions with a synergistic effect of increased water repellency, with this effect being more intense when the size of each particle is between 20 m and 60 m, as these particles are better distributed on the substrate.

[0033] Associating particulate inorganic compounds with emulsions potentiates the water repellent effect of the waxes, due to oriented adsorption of the surfactant molecules, where the polar or hydrophilic region of the molecule anchors the inorganic compound through electrostatic effects, while the apolar portion tends to remain in the outer region, associating with the waxes in the emulsion. This novel system increases the hydrophobic characteristic of the substrate when the product is applied to the substrate, particularly particulate wood.

[0034] Particulate inorganic compounds that are useful for the purposes of the invention are selected from among phyllosilicates such as unmodified agalmatolite, potassium aluminosilicate, talc, manganese silicate or mixtures thereof in any proportion, added before or after the emulsification of the waxes, with the intention of applying these emulsions mainly to panels made from reconstituted wood composites.

[0035] In a preferred embodiment, the emulsion addressed by the invention is produced through the use of homogenization agents and is then mixed with the inorganic compound(s). The emulsion resulting from this process is applied to particulate wood during panel manufacturing processes, and is thus incorporated into the panel structure.

[0036] The emulsion addressed by the invention is composed of: i. water, used as a carrier; ii. waxes, used as water repellent agents and chosen from among: minerals selected from among vaseline, paraffin, microcrystalline petroleum wax, slack wax, ozocerite, lignite wax, peat wax; plants selected from among soybeans, palms, flax, candelilla, carnauba, ricin and olive, esters; animals, selected from among beeswax, lanolin, beef fat derivatives; or synthetic, selected from among polyethylene wax and Fischer-Tropsch wax; iii. surfactants, used as emulsifying agents, that may be anionic, selected from among sodium, potassium, ammonium and other fatty acid soaps; fatty acids and sulfated, sulfonated, phosphate, malleated benzene derivatives non-ionics, selected from among polyvinyl derivatives, acrylate derivatives, woodpulp derivatives, ethoxylated fatty alcohols, sulfated, sulfonated phosphated and ethoxylated malleated benzene derivatives, etc; and cationics: tertiary fatty amine derivatives; alkyl benzene amine derivatives and similar ethoxyelated products; and iv. particulate inorganic compounds, used as water repellent agents, selected from among calcium and magnesium carbonate, dolomite, limestone, barite, kaolin, mica, pyrophyllite, manganese and aluminum silicate, gypsum, plaster, calcium sulfate, titanium dioxide, silicon dioxide, iron oxides, chrome oxides, antimony oxides, aluminum oxides and hydroxides, unmodified phyllosilicates such as agalmatolites, bentonite, montmorillonite, hectorite, saponite, and illite, phyllosilicates and variations thereof. The inorganic compounds are used alone or in combinations among them, in any proportion. In a preferred embodiment, the inorganic compound used is agalmatolite.

[0037] The wax-based composition addressed by the invention is comprised within the following boundaries:

[0038] a) water at 5% to 90%, specifically at 30% to 50%, by weight in terms of the total weight of the composition;

[0039] b) surfactants at 0.01% to 20%, specifically at 0.5% to 3%, by weight in terms of the total weight of the composition;

[0040] c) waxes at 2% to 90%, specifically at 35% to 60%, by weight in terms of the total weight of the composition; and

[0041] d) particulate inorganic compounds at 2% to 90%, specifically at 5% to 35%, by weight in terms of the total weight of the composition, with a particle size of 0.01 m to 1000 m, specifically 20 m to 60 m.

[0042] Consequently, in a preferred embodiment, the particulate inorganic compounds are potassium, magnesium and aluminum silicate, with unmodified phyllosilicates selected from among agalmatolite, mica, pyrophyllite, muscovite or mixtures thereof, used pure or combined in any proportion.

[0043] Furthermore, the particulate inorganic compounds are alternatively defined as calcium and magnesium carbonates, dolomite, limestone, barite, kaolin, mica, pyrophyllite, agalmatolites, manganese and aluminum silicate, gypsum, plaster, calcium sulfate, titanium dioxide, silicon dioxide, iron oxides, chrome oxides, antimony oxides, aluminum oxides and hydroxides, bentonite, montmorillonite, hectorite, saponite, and illite, unmodified phyllosilicates or mixtures thereof, used pure or combined in any proportion.

[0044] In one embodiment of the invention, the composition consists of an aqueous paraffin emulsion produced as described below, as percentages of the total weight of the composition:

[0045] a) 48% water

[0046] b) 35% paraffin selected from among vaseline, paraffin, microcrystalline petroleum wax, slack wax, ozocerite, lignite wax, peat wax, soybeans, palms, flax, candelilla, carnauba, ricin and olive, esters, beeswax, lanolin, beef fat derivatives, polyethylene wax and Fischer-Tropsch wax; and

[0047] c) 2% surfactant selected from among sodium, potassium and ammonium soaps and made from fatty acids; fatty acids and sulfated, sulfonated, phosphated, malleated benzene derivatives; polyvinyl derivatives, acrylate derivatives, woodpulp derivatives, ethoxylated fatty alcohols, sulfated, sulfonated phosphated and ethoxylated malleated benzene derivatives, etc; tertiary fatty amine derivatives; alkyl benzene amine derivatives and similar ethoxyelated products; and

[0048] d) 15% particulate inorganic compounds selected from among unmodified phyllosilicates, including agalmatolite, potassium aluminosilicate, talc and manganese silicate, pure or mixed among themselves in any proportion.

Example 1

[0049] A paraffin emulsion with the composition as described above was applied on an industrial chipboard production line. A reduction in dosage was also used in order to prove the enhanced performance.

[0050] The performance data for the composition addressed by the invention in terms of swelling and water absorption are listed in Table 1 below, including the industrial plant acceptance limits. It may be noted that, even with a 25% dosage reduction on the inner layer, the swelling and absorption results (tests conducted in compliance with the ABNT NBR 14810:2013 Standard established by the Brazilian Technical Standards Association) were acceptable and close to the initial performance.

TABLE-US-00001 TABLE 1 Panels leaving the press Emulsion dosage Absorption Sanded panels Dosage Dosage Swelling 2 2 hours, Swelling 2 Absorption Swelling 24 Absorption internal external hours, % % (max. hours, % 2 hours, % hours, % 24 hours, % layer, % layer, % (max. 8%) 35%) (max. 8%) (max. 35%) (max. 16%) (max. 70%) 0.40 0.35 7.50 26.33 6.01 19.88 11.82 39.90 0.40 0.35 7.00 26.75 6.32 20.45 10.43 36.75 0.35 0.30 7.86 29.79 7.45 21.13 12.83 43.52 0.35 0.30 7.96 31.37 0.35 0.30 7.30 26.60 0.30 0.30 7.86 31.08 7.95 22.00 11.07 37.52 0.30 0.30 7.84 29.57

Example 2

[0051] As shown in the following Table, laboratory tests of paraffin emulsion applied to MDP panels, with and without inorganic compounds that were assessed for swelling and water absorption in compliance with the ABNT NBR 14.810:2003 Standard issued by the Brazilian Technical Standards Association (ABNT) showed less swelling and absorption for emulsions with inorganic compounds. In both cases, the paraffin emulsion had 52% total solids; in the emulsion with an inorganic compound, 30% its paraffin was replaced by an inorganic compound.

TABLE-US-00002 TABLE 2 Swelling Absorption Absorption 2 hours 2 hours Swelling 24 24 hours (%) (%) hours (%) (%) Emulsion without 3.5 17.5 10.1 47.0 inorganic compound Emulsion with 2.7 15.6 8.5 44.9 30% inorganic compound

[0052] It must be clear to specialists that this invention is not limited to the representations mentioned or illustrated here, but must rather be understood in its broader scope. Many modifications and other representations of the invention will come to mind for a person versed in the art to which this invention belongs, with the benefit of the teachings presented in the above descriptions in this Report.

[0053] Furthermore, it is understood that this invention is not limited to the specific form disclosed, whereby modifications and other forms are understood as included within the scope of the Claims appended hereto. Although specific terms are employed here, they are used only in a generic and descriptive sense, with no intention of imposing constraints.